Candidates set for three Inland Valley local contests

Voters in three Inland Valley cities can look forward to elections in March for either city council seats or a new tax measure.

Claremont and Chino Hills are scheduled to have competitive elections for council seats on March 5. Meanwhile, San Dimas voters will get to have their say on a hotel tax measure as well as for two council seats.

A fourth city, La Verne, was scheduled to have an election on March 5 but will not need to because no challengers filed papers to compete with the city's incumbents.

CLAREMONT

Appointed Mayor Larry Schroeder and Councilman Corey Calaycay are seeking re-election. They will face a challenge from Michael Keenan, who has made three previous unsucessful attempts to run for council.

Keenan was also sentenced to three years' probabation in May after being found guilty of trespassing at an organic garden at Pomona College. Keenan had said he was upset by a lack of public access to the garden.

CHINO HILLS

Chino Hills will hold a special election to name a successor to retired Councilman Bill Kruger.

The four candidates who have qualified for the special election to succeed Kruger are Debra Hernandez, Chino Valley Independent Fire District board member Ray Marquez, attorney Rossana Mitchell and attorney Jesse Singh.

The Chino Hills election is scheduled to be handled entirely by mail-ballots.

LA VERNE

Mayor Don Kendrick, Robin Carder and Donna Redman have no challengers and will not need to appear on a ballot to serve an additional term.

SAN DIMAS

San Dimas Mayor Curtis Morris and councilmen Denis Bertone and Jeff Templeman will also face no competition in the March election.

Their names are still set to appear on a ballot, however, because San Dimas officials have placed on the same ballot Measure A, an increase to the Transient Occupancy Tax.

That increase to what is commonly called the bed tax for those staying in hotels, motels or recreational vehicle campgrounds would be from the current 8 percent to 12 percent.